Coal scam: CBI wondering why MoC sought docs on sanction issue

New Delhi: CBI today told a special court that it was “beyond comprehension” as to why the Coal Ministry or Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) were seeking documents from them on the sanction issue in coal scam cases which “may tilt the balance in favour of the accused”.

Noting that it has already provided all the relevant records, CBI said they have received a letter on June 11 from DoPT with reference to five cases in which documents were sent to them in pursuance to the court’s directions for considering according of sanction to try two public servants, K S Kropha and K C Samria, for their alleged roles in coal scam cases.

It said in the letter, some documents including FIR, draft charge sheet, statement of witnesses, disclosure statements and other relevant materials were sought by the Ministry of Coal.

The CBI said that in the DoPT letter certain documents were sought for by Ministry, including “any material which may tilt the balance in favour of the accused.”

CBI’s prosecutor told the court that they have sent reply to DoPT’s Secretary that all documents sought have been already sent along with the records and “any further relevant document as were sought for in the letter, can be looked into only after the same are specified”.

“It has been thus submitted that in all the five cases referred to in letter dated June 11, 2015 all the documents as were necessary for considering the issue of according sanction to prosecute the two public servants and as have been now sought for were already sent in the necessary proforma to the DoPT on February 11, 2015 itself,” Special CBI Judge Bharat Parashar said.

“It was thus submitted by senior public prosecutor that it was beyond comprehension as to why the communication as referred to above was being made by DoPT or by Ministry of Coal when the entire record was already available with them,” the judge noted in his order.

The court had earlier directed CBI to place records of the case before the competent authority so that they could consider according sanction to prosecute Kropha, former Joint Secretary in Coal Ministry, and Vishwas Sawakhande, then Director of Directorate of Geology and Mining in Maharashtra Government, for alleged offences under the Prevention of Corruption Act.